Saturday, September 5, 2015

The Runner Stumbles (1979)

The final film directed by
self-appointed cinematic moralist Stanley Kramer, this peculiar drama presents
a sensationalistic story in a manner that ranges from absurdly
lighthearted to absurdly overwrought. To be fair, most scenes occupy a
palatable middle ground of rationality and restraint. Nonetheless, the extremes
define this piece, as does the suffocating artificiality that permeates every
scene, whether the scene in question is bad, good, or indifferent. To get a
sense of why this picture is simultaneously respectable and ridiculous, The Runner Stumbles stars jovial
song-and-dance man Dick Van Dyke as a middle-aged priest suspected of not only
sleeping with a pretty young nun, but also of murdering her—not exactly “Chim
Chim Cher-ee” territory. And when Ray Bolger, the Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz (1939), shows up to
represent the full weight of religious authority, The Runner Stumbles approaches self-parody.

Set in a remote part of
Michigan circa 1911, and based loosely upon a true story, the picture begins
with Father Rivard (Van Dyke) fetching his parish’s latest addition,
fresh-faced Sister Rita (Kathleen Quinlan), from a transit station. They strike
sparks immediately, because she’s challenging and curious while he’s a bundle
of conflicts—on one hand, he’s a stickler for rules and tradition since he’s
tired of fighting the church establishment, and on the other hand, he’s a
passionate freethinker who once imagined a more important destiny for himself.
Rita’s attitude represents a bracing change from the two sickly older nuns she
was hired to assist, and Rita soon raises eyebrows by teaching secular songs to
local children. Later, when the older nuns contract tuberculosis, Rivard
suggest that Rita move into his residence, thereby separating her from
contagions. This scandalizes everyone involved, from Rivard’s devout
housekeeper, Mrs. Shandig (Maureen Stapleton), to the monsignor with authority
over Rivard’s parish, Nicholson (Bolger). The fraught scenario climaxes in a
noisy final act comprising a fire, illicit sex, and a trial shot through with
venomous accusations. Framing the main storyline is a recurring courtroom
sequence featuring Rivard—incarcerated on suspicion of murder after Rita’s body
is discovered—receiving counsel from his inexperienced young lawyer, Toby
Felker (Beau Bridges).

Excepting Bridges’ loose and naturalistic work,
everything about The Runner Stumbles
is old-fashioned and sterile. Quinlan plays her role like Shirley Temple with
mood swings, utterly failing to make Rita’s dangerous instability seem
credible. Van Dyke is equally stiff in many scenes, though he paints colors of
bitterness and rage with surprising skill. Unfortunately, Van Dyke is so broad
and theatrical during the film’s crucial trial scene that he undercuts his few
good moments elsewhere. That’s why the abrupt and unsatisfying ending doesn’t
really matter: It’s just one more false note in an atonal symphony.